Home » Posts tagged "horror fiction" (Page 6)

Book Review: Shallow Waters: A Flash Fiction Anthology: Special Halloween Edition edited by Joe Mynhardt

cover art for Shallow Waters: A Flash Fiction Anthology: Special Halloween Edition

Shallow Waters: A Flash Fiction Anthology; Special Halloween Edition Book 9 of 10) edited by Joe Mynhardt

Crystal Lake Publishing, 2022

ASIN:: B0BGYXGH4D

Available: Kindle edition ( Amazon.com )

 

Shallow Waters, a monthly flash fiction contest hosted by Crystal Lake Publishing, collects stories with different themes each month. This volume presents 18 pieces of flash fiction centered around Halloween. While I enjoyed all of the stories in this anthology, there are a some that stuck with me long after I finished the book.

 

William Meikle is one of my favorite genre writers, and his “Tumshie” is my top pick in in this book. A drunkard of an abusive father refuses to let his son have a Halloween pumpkin, rather insisting on a tumshie, a carved turnip. When John discovers the secret of the tumshie, he embraces his new tradition.

 

I enjoy stories that aren’t told in a typical format. Letters, newspaper articles, and diaries lend stories a more intimate feel. “West Pennfield Township Newsletter, October 2021” by Tom Coombe presents a, well, newsletter to the township regarding “simple rules” that the townspeople need to follow lest The Judges be awakened. Another story told in a unique format is Francesca Maria’s “How to Create the Perfect Pumpkin.” Carving a fresh pumpkin can be so exciting, but there is something about this list of instructions that doesn’t seem right.

 

In “I Want Candy” by Larry Hinkle, Erik’s addiction to candy leads him to do the unthinkable when his wife and child come home from a successful night of trick-or-treating.

 

Rick Whatley’s “Let the Darkness In” comes from the perspective of two parties. Four Class of 2022 high school seniors set out to kill a witch. Behind closed doors and still in mourning, Edith doesn’t know what is coming.

 

In “The Pumpkin Fetch” by Tom Deady, the Halloween traditional of a pumpkin thieving contest ends in a different kind of harvest.

 

The chaos of a Halloween party where parents and children are in attendance results in an urban legend becoming a reality in “One Parent Survives” by Wil Dalton.

 

I have only read a few flash fiction collections, and I am impressed with how some authors can evoke fear in a reader with few words. Because of the impact this anthology had on me, I will be reading other volumes in Shallow Waters. Recommended

 

 

Reviewed by Lizzy Walker

Posted on December 18, 2022 by , Reply

Book Review: The Bone Worms: The Expanded and Revised Edition by Keith Minnion

Cover art for The Bone Worms by Keith Minnion

The Bone Worms: The Expanded and Revised Edition by Keith Minnion

Cemetery Dance Press, 2022

ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1587678547

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition ( Cemetery Dance | Amazon..com )

 

The Bone Worms is one of the best horror novels of the past decade. That’s high praise, but well-earned. Keith Minnion has long been a force in the horror genre, both as an author and artist. He made his name as an illustrator for several magazines and publishers, most notably and recently for the Stephen King/Richard Chizmar novels Gwendy’s Button Box and Gwendy’s Magic Feather. His short stories have been making the rounds since 1979, and his two collections have garnered high praise.

 

This expanded and updated edition of Minnion’s earlier book The Bone Worms is immensely readable and well-written. It tears into ground that feels untrodden and fresh. These days, finding something that is both new and successful in execution is tough. This novel nails it on both counts. It is easily one of the strongest entries in the genre in the past ten years, a very strong time for dark novels. Just dive into the story with as little advance knowledge as possible

 

The sky holds secrets that man has yet to figure out: the boneyard exists somewhere above the clouds. To explain the bone worms and their lair would be akin to spilling the secrets of a macabre Santa. 

 

Back in 1921,  a six-year old is taken for a biplane ride for his birthday party. Something terrible happens up in the sky, in the boneyard, that will scar the boy and his friend for life. Many years later, in 1983, the boys, now senior citizens, hole up in an apartment together, one trying to keep the other safe from what’s been seeking them for decades.

 

Detective Frank Lomax searches Philadelphia for the killer who’s been flaying victims open all over town. Left behind are gruesome crime scenes– yet no bones. Fresh off a breakdown, he knows this case could make him, or shatter his psyche for good. The deeper he plunges into the world of the bone worms, the stranger the case becomes, and the edges of reality fray with each clue uncovered.

 

Part horror novel, part police procedural, part thriller, The Bone Worms will rattle readers’ bones, at least while they’re still inside the body. Easily one of the best reads of this year.

 

This gorgeous edition includes extras and artwork. Minnion also created the dazzling cover.

 

Recommended reading for fans of great storytelling.

 

Posted on December 12, 2022 by , Reply

Book Review: A Man in Pieces: An American Nightmare by Henry Corrigan

Cover art for A Man in Pieces: An American Nightmare by Henry Corrigan

A Man In Pieces An American Nightmare by Henry Corrigan

Darkstroke Books, 2022

ISBN: 9798848967593

Available: Paperback, Kindle edition

 

 

Renowned book reviewer and armchair philosopher Murray Samuelson was famously quoted as saying “that which is interesting in life resides in the domain of mundania.”  In other words, sometimes the basic, everyday stuff can make for a good book, if written well.  That’s exactly what you get with A Man In Pieces..  There is no big action, no big gore, no big excitement… instead, it is a subtle, well–written portrait of what happens when everyday stress finally pushes a person off the edge of sanity.

 

The precise stress on the characters in this story is the‘ big possibility of losing their jobs in a tight job market, when living paycheck to paycheck (one many people can probably relate to)  Mike and Tom are the two main characters, a couple of drones in an office cubicle farm.  They are diametrically opposite in character, competing for the same job, and dislike each other immensely.  The story encompasses just one five-day workweek.  They both find out on Monday about the coming layoffs, but of course WHO is going to get tossed won’t be decided till Friday.  How they deal with the specter of looming unemployment and possible bankruptcy over the week is what makes up the story.

 

Based on the above, the book probably doesn’t sound that interesting…but somehow, it is.  Just chalk it up to good writing.  This is more of a psychological story, focused on  the thoughts and feelings of the characters, rather than their outward actions, and their inner thoughts are of paramount importance in this story.  The pacing is measured and methodical as the deadline approaches for the characters, each of them struggling to keep going, knowing their lives might take a crashing turn for the worse.  One of them tries to hide it away and put on a happy face, while the other becomes rude and antagonistic, but cracks start showing in the frame of their sanity over the week.  That’s the fun part of the book: the slow build, it leaves you anticipating more to come…and it does.  Friday arrives, someone (or both someones) is about to have their life change for the worse, and then…why, you’ll have to read the book to find out, of course!

 

Unusual in its style and plot choice but satisfying nevertheless, A Man In Pieces is a stylish character study that will impress readers looking for something out of the ordinary.  Recommended.

 

 

Reviewed by Murray Samuelson

Posted on December 5, 2022 by , Reply
First « 45678 » Last